Scraping the bottom of the barrel (literally!) is done for a single purpose: the legislative elections. Thetiming for these announcements perfectly matches the upcoming election season. In fact, I venture to wager that scarcity will wither down in the coming months, and that suddenly washing machines and refrigerators will begin to prop up in public squares near you.

The government is raising debt and selling off the few assets it has left, but that in itself is not a terrible thing. Governments issue debt and sell off assets all the time. The problem is that what is driving them is pure populism. There is no underlying economic strategy at play, no debate on the pros and cons of selling Chalmette. It’s simply populism at work.

The government is bankrupt, but it has a few chips it can still cash in. You know, for old times’ sake.

After that … well, all bets are off.

(HT: Emi)

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